The present invention relates to a portable imager apparatus which includes a video camera as an imager unit, a direct-view type flat display as an electronic view finder or display, and a semiconductor memory or video tape recorder (VTR) as a storage or recording unit, wherein the video camera, the flat display, and the recording unit are integrated with each other, and more particularly to an imager apparatus which allows a user to monitor an image on a flat display to adjust the angle of the video camera apparatus while imaging a subject.
Conventionally, an imager apparatus of this kind has been disclosed in JP-B-4-6154 entitled "Camera Integrated VTR Having Monitor TV". This camera integrated VTR has a VTR unit and a monitor TV unit integrally accommodated in a housing, with a video camera unit pivoted substantially in a central portion of the right side surface of the housing for rotation about a horizontal axis forming a right angle with the side plane. The camera integrated VTR may be entirely supported by the right hand of a user, or the housing may be supported by the left hand such that the monitor unit opposes the user while the video camera unit is held and rotated by the right hand relative to the monitor unit to change an inclined angle of the video camera unit for imaging a subject. Also, an article "High Image Quality MS Movie VL-HL1" by Etsuo Hoshikawa et al. (Sharp Technical Report Vol. 54, No. 11 pp. 67-70, 1992) describes an imager apparatus which has a VTR and a liquid crystal display integrated on the left side of a housing such that they are pivoted for rotation relative to each other.
The kind of imager apparatus as mentioned above is structured such that the video camera unit may be rotated by an angular distance of 180 to face to the same direction as the monitor unit does. This mechanism allows the user to image himself while viewing his image on the monitor unit. Generally, the video camera is set to obtain an upright image without topsy-turvy when a subject in front of the user is to be imaged. Therefore, if the video camera is rotated by 180 about the horizontal axis, an image is displayed or recorded in an upside-down state. In order to correct such an upside-down image of the user himself to an upright image for recording, the video camera unit is first directed to the user, and then the monitor unit is rotated by 180 about the horizontal axis to face to the user. In this event, since the image would be displayed upside down on the monitor unit if the vertical scanning was started from the uppermost left position on the screen of the monitor unit as is the case of normal imaging, the vertical scanning is inverted, i.e., started from the lowermost right position of the screen to turn over the display on the monitor unit, and consequently an upright image is produced on the monitor unit.
Since the vertical scanning of the monitor unit is performed from the lowermost line instead of the uppermost line of the screen, upright images are usually displayed on the screen when the video camera unit and the monitor unit face to the same direction. Stated another way, even if the video camera unit is normally held with the monitor unit rotated by 180 about the horizontal axis, upright images are displayed on the monitor unit. On the contrary, even if the monitor unit is normally held with the video camera unit rotated by 180 about the horizontal axis, upright images are displayed on the monitor unit. In summary, upright images are usually displayed on the monitor unit even when either the video camera unit or the monitor unit is turned over. In view of recording images by a recording apparatus such as VTR, it is correct to normally hold the video camera unit and turn the monitor unit over. However, it is often the case that, during imaging, the user holds the monitor unit at a constant angle (the screen of the monitor unit generally faces the user) and changes the angle of the video camera unit to follow a subject. Therefore, even when the user images himself, the user often rotates the video camera unit by 180 with the monitor unit left at a fixed position, considering that the same imaging way also applies in this case. As a result, upside down images are recorded on a recording medium by a recording apparatus.
Also, in the prior art examples described in JP-B-4-6154 and Hoshikawa's article, the imager apparatus is such a type that the user holds the video camera unit for imaging, where the video camera unit has a size equal to or close to that of the VTR unit or the monitor unit, and the VTR unit and the monitor unit are rotatably pivoted in the video camera unit. On page 70 of the Hoshikawa's article, a rotating member is disclosed for coupling the video camera unit and the VTR liquid crystal monitor unit. Since the rather heavy VTR unit and monitor unit are rotatably pivoted in the large video camera unit, joining portions for supporting these components require high strength, as will be also appreciated from the fact that a holder member such as a mechanism hold frame is needed. The structure for ensuring this high strength leads to a larger size and increased weight of the whole imager apparatus.